First Lady Melania is newly "obsessed" with masculine fashion. What does this mean for the Trump administration?
Power dressing? From now on to the maximum
In recent months, Melania has maximised power dressing - her styling has combined men's cuts with a touch of feminine elements. It's a far cry from the wardrobe we saw during her first stint as FLOTUS (First Lady of the United States), when she donned the 2016 inaugurationcoat dress in powder blue, for the Marine Corps' "Reserve Toys for Tots" campaign she wore skinny khaki pants tucked into tall boots, and for the 2019 NATO Leaders Summit she paired pink pumps with a banana yellow coat.
Now, she appears at so-called black tie events at the White House alongside her tuxedo-clad husband. On February 22, the Slovenian-born former model joined Donald Trump as he hosted the annual National Governors Association dinner. The pair were photographed holding hands on the red carpet in matching suits, prompting some commenters on social media to remark, "Well, we know who wears the pants in this relationship."
The official portrait has stirred controversy
For her official portrait at the White House, Melania posed in a single-breasted black tweed tuxedo by Dolce & Gabbana, a satin belt, white shirt and trousers with a single-stock waist. The official photo, printed in black and white, captured her leaning against a table with a reflective plaque in a powerful pose. "Melania Trump Performs The Apprentice Cosplay" was the headline of Vogue, which analysed the image (and alluded to a biopic about Donald Trump's career).
Even for her first official appearance as the new US First Lady, Melania chose an extended coat by Adam Lippes and a wide-brimmed hat by Eric Javits.
When a sweatshirt has a mind of its own
So: what's behind this new obsession with men's fashion? Is Melania sending a message to her husband and his conservative base - an imaginary middle finger to Andrew Tate-watching, alpha-male wannabes? "She's using her fashion to communicate something," Graves says. "I don't think it's a big departure from what she wore [during her first four years as FLOTUS]. It's more of an evolution."
In the past, Melania has been known to express her feelings through clothing. When she wore a sweatshirt seven years ago that said "I really don't care - do you?" on the back, she was actually waging a silent campaign against public opinion of herself.
"It was aimed at people and the left-wing media who criticize me," she said at the time of the inscription on her top. "I want to show them that I don't care."
Graves thinks Melania's current penchant for men's fashion conveys a new message that reflects her intentions for the next four years. "It signals, 'I'm ready. I'm not just a pretty face. I'm here to do my job.'"
Is this about redefining femininity?
For his part, Albert Varkki, fashion expert and co-founder of luxury leather goods brand Von Baer, believes Melania's fashion is "a reflection of a broader cultural shift in power dressing and a redefinition of classic femininity in political contexts."
Women have used men's fashion as a means to assert dominance and mutual respect since they first took over blue-collar jobs during the Industrial Revolution and when men were forced to leave their factory jobs due to World War II, allowing their female counterparts to take their positions.
"Looks inspired by men's fashion, historically associated with symbols of power and dominance, helped Melania build an image that was both mysterious and unattainable, emphasizing her presence without adornment," Varkki notes.
Although the cut of her clothes is "slim" - in contrast to the looser silhouette of men's fashion - she refuses to embody society's outdated definition of femininity, in which women are soft and silent accessories to powerful men.
"She wears pants to be different. She says, 'I'm an equal,'" Graves explains.
In other words, Graves doesn't believe Melanie's dressing in men's clothing is a campaign against her husband or his views on gender norms.
"I feel like Donald Trump is very much an alpha male and I would expect him to have - however you define beauty - someone feminine to sort of balance that energy," Graves noted. "And Melania wearing a suit doesn't necessarily go against that. I think she strategically styles these stronger codes in a very feminine way. So she still fits into that."
"I think if she was trying to be masculine, she wouldn't be doing it this way - wearing heels and an open shirt. It reminds me of Tom Ford in the '90s," she continued. "She's just somehow changing the codes without removing the feminine side."
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